Kudos to my fabulous betas: RoseCityxSaltskin & serina1944! You two are fabulous, and this chapter would have been a whole lot messier without your help!

As always, thanks so much for your reviews/follows/favorites, and enjoy!

Previously on Everything Changes...

I reached his door, and Damon was in front of me, his eyes slightly foggier than before.

"Chandra..." his voice was overcome with grief, and he dipped his head down.

His lips got closer to mine and I let out a little gasp, backing up. "No. Caroline."

I walked around him, shutting his door. I leaned against the door, slumping to the ground.

I took a slow breath, trying to exhale out all my emotions.

Caroline's POV

When my eyes fluttered open the next morning, there was a bit of light filtering into my room like there normally was. But for some odd reason, my alarm hadn't even gone off yet.

Loud, blaring music from downstairs was what woke me.

Glancing at my phone, the lock screen read 7:00 a.m.

I groaned, knowing I couldn't sleep with all that noise. I hadn't gone to bed until midnight, and I was regretting it already.

Stumbling into my bathroom, I washed my face and brushed my hair. It was beginning to look dirty, and I sighed. I would definitely need a shower before I headed off to school at nine.

I adjusted my pajama pants, retying them so they wouldn't slip down my hips, and went into the hallway.

"Caroline," Stefan greeted, exiting his room as well. He was already dressed and wide awake. It appeared he had already been somewhere, but I didn't bother to ask where.

The loud music still pulsed on downstairs, and we met gazes.

"What's going on?" I asked, running a hand through my dirty hair. I would definitely need to wash it soon.

Mental note! Caroline, wash your nasty hair! I said to myself, being sure to actually make a mental note, not just think about doing it.

We went down the stairs, and a strange smell filled my nostrils.

'"What is that?" I mused aloud, scrunching my nose.

He got his 'broody vampire look' and sighed. "Smells like...blood...and...sex?"

My draw dropped, but I honestly wasn't too surprised. It'd be just like Damon to go and retaliate by making out and killing – or just drinking – from a bunch of girls.

Damon.

"How do I taste?" I heard a girl ask loudly over the music.

Damon mumbled something drunkenly in response, as Stefan flicked on the lights.

"No!" he groaned and I saw him withdraw his fangs from a girl's neck.

"Seriously, Damon?" I grumbled, knowing he could probably hear me. I killed the music, and my eyebrows probably disappeared into my hairline. There had to be at least four or five of the sorority girls, and they were all in sexy lingerie or short dresses. Bite marks covered their bodies, and they were seemingly oblivious to their injuries.

"Buzzkill Bob and Blondie...Greetings," the drunk Salvatore slurred, straightening up on the couch.

"Can we talk?" Stefan asked and Damon shrugged in response.

"Yeah."

The younger brother's gaze flickered over to the girls. "Without the Tri-Delts."

Damon's arms were draped over two girls shoulders. "Anything you can say, you can say in front of them. They're really good at keeping secrets." he smirked, wiggling his eyebrows. Stefan clenched his jaw.

I hesitantly touched Stefan's shoulder.

"I'll let you two talk."

Stefan dipped his head thankfully and I headed into the kitchen.

"Zach." I said in surprise when I saw my godfather leaning against the counter, sipping coffee. "Did you see...?"

"Damon?" he laughed dryly, swirling the remnants of his coffee around in his cup. "Yeah. I was going to say something...but I figured it'd be better if I didn't. Stefan filled me in on what happened last night."

I retrieved a box of cereal from the cupboard, and poured it into a porcelain bowl. I put the box back in it's place and got the milk out next.

"Yeah..." I thought back to last night and Damon and I's almost kiss. "I think it's hard on him - Damon - since I look so much like the girl he tried to save."

Zach nodded and I took a bite of my food.

"So, remember when I asked you to search for my dad?" I took another bite, considering my words. "Right after I moved in, and you said you would dig some?"

'Uncle' Zach bobbed his head. "Yeah, why?"

"Well, did you? Do some digging, that is."

"What brought this up?" he asked, placing his mug into the sink.

"Just Bonnie's Gram's funeral reminded me of Mom. And she never talked about him much. And since you said you would..." I explained.

He kept his back turned, still rinsing his mug. "I didn't find much, Caroline."

"Zach," I said, growing serious. "What is it?"

He turned around slowly and placed his now dry mug into the cupboard.

His body language said that what he found wasn't good.

~0~

Third Person POV

"So did you?" Elena demanded. "Dig?"

Jenna sighed, looking up at her niece, who was standing in her bedroom doorway.

"C'mon inside, 'Lena."

Jenna opened her laptop, and sat on her bed.

"Your dad kept most records of his medical practices. Anything you could think of – logs, records, appointment books." The redhead leaned over and pulled a book out of a box settled in front of her nightstand. "I was reading last week, and I found an entry from the night you were born." Jenna rifled through the pages, finally finding what she was looking for. "Aha. Isobel Peterson."

"Who's that?"

"It's the name of the pregnant teenage runaway who was there that night," Jenna explained, and Elena nodded slowly.

"That's her real name?"

"Eh, probably not. First name, maybe, but last name...probably a classmate or best friend's..." Jenna went on to pull up Bing. "I binged it. I searched for any and all Petersons in this area born in the same year as Isobel. I found a few men, and a woman – Trudie, who lived in Grove Hill, Virginia."

"That's not far from here." Elena murmured, pushing her hair behind her ear.

"Well, come see what I found." Jenna typed something else, and suddenly Elena was looking at a picture of two girls. A blonde and a brunette in cheer uniforms.

"Isobel," Elena smirked and read the caption to herself. "She was a cheerleader like me."

Her aunt nodded, grinning proudly. "Trudie still lives there." She pulled a pink post-it note out from the last page of the journal. "This is her address."

"What about Isobel?" Elena asked, raising an eyebrow.

She had asked for Isobel, not Trudie...

"I couldn't find anything about her."

Elena huffed out a long breath, looking discouraged. Jenna paused for a brief second before divulging new information. "Listen. There's something else. Mr. Saltzman, Ric, his wife was from around here, and her name was also Isobel."

"'Was' as in..." Elena trailed off, staring down at her aunt.

Jenna took a deep breath and looked up to meet her eyes. "She died."

~0~

"Aw..." Damon cooed. "You're worried about me. That's nice. Don't be. There's no need. I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" he said in a normal voice, but Stefan knew he was being sarcastic. "I spent the last 145 years with one goal: get in that tomb. I succeeded. Granted, Chandra wasn't in there to be rescued, but why dwell?" he shrugged, taking a long swig out of his bottle. "You know, it's so liberating not having a master plan, because I can do whatever and whoever the hell I want." he smirked.

"That's kind of what I'm afraid of," Stefan said, moving his concerned gaze back to the girls for a split second.

"Relax," Damon said. "I haven't killed anyone in—" he puffed out an exaggerated breath. "—too long."

His brother raised an eyebrow gesturing to the sorority girls for a second time. "Those girls...?"

"Will end up in their dorm with headaches, think they blacked out. Business as usual." he shrugged. "Predictable you didn't pull me over here for a pep talk. So drink up." Damon shoved the bottle into his brother's hands. "Spill it, brother."

Stefan took the bottle with a clench of his jaw and set it on the side table.

"There was a woman you may have known a few years back named Isobel in North Carolina at Duke." Stefan said, getting straight to the point.

"You wanna discuss the women in my past right now? Seriously?" Damon raised his eyebrows, looking at his brother like he was insane.

"You killed her," Stefan said flatly, as if that made it okay to talk about his past women.

"What's your point?"

"I just—just wanna know if you remember anything about her." he said halfheartedly. Elena had told Stefan early this morning about Isobel – Alaric's possible dead wife, and Elena's mother.

"Oh, it's like a needle in a haystack, Stefan." he furrowed his brows and shook his head.

"Well, think hard. It's important," Stefan said in response, a serious look on his face.

Damon gripped his brother's shoulders tightly, the leather jacket bunching up in his grip.

Leaning forward, he placed his lips next to his brother's ear. "Nothing is important, not anymore." he hissed before pulling away.

Clapping his brother on the shoulder, Damon leaned over and snatched the bottle off the table.

"I'll take that." Damon murmured, and backed away. "Great chat. I have to go and exploit some women in the name of grief, which I'm sure you understand. "TTFN", said the Tri-Delt." he chuckled and turned around, walking down the stairs, back to the girls.

~0~

Alaric's POV

Jenna handed me a corner of the banner and I climbed up the ladder, hanging the corner on the nail sticking out the side of the building.

"I don't know... It's just weird, y'know, being raffled off like a Disney Cruise." I said, responding to her question about how I felt being one of Mystic Fall's 'eligible bachelors'.

"In this town, fundraising is like an indentured servitude. You don't really have a choice." Jenna chuckled. "Besides, you're a bachelor and you're eligible, so there you go."

While she was talking, she was up on her own ladder, struggling to reach her own nail.

"Here," I said, getting down off the ladder. "Let me get this for you."

Jenna smiled thankfully, climbing off her own ladder. I quickly went up her ladder and slipped the ring through the nail.

"Thanks." she said, peering up at me.

I leaned in and brushed a gentle kiss to her lips.

She looked windswept as I pulled away. She looked away for a moment, sighing.

"Ugh, I can't believe I'm going to do this," she grumbled, mostly to herself.

"What?" I asked, looking down at her.

"I'm totally going to ruin this moment, but I— I have to tell you. Elena recently found out she was adopted, and she's been looking for her birth mother...whose name was Isobel." she explained, and my eyes widened.

No, it couldn't be.

"Isobel?" I repeated dumbly. "Like my wife?"

She nodded in response, fishing her phone out of her pocket.

"Isobel never had a baby..." I said, my mind trying to processes the whole thing.

"Are you sure? Not before you were together?"

I shook my head, thinking back to the days I spent with her. "Nope. No way."

I glanced down at the phone in her hand, and she handed it to me.

A younger version of the dark haired Isobel was on the screen, and my breath caught in my throat.

"This is Elena's birth mother," she murmured, and I couldn't processes.

I assume an alarmed look was on my face when I said. "Ah, she, uh—she never told me. I, uh—I'm gonna go. Yeah, I'm gonna—gonna go."

I walked off awkwardly, dragging my hands through my hair.

~0~

Caroline's POV

I stepped out of my bathroom, ready to go to school, when my phone rang.

Elena.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Caroline," she greeted. "Uh, I was wondering. Since Bonnie's at her aunt's...could you maybe go somewhere with me?"

"Sure." I responded, still mulling over what Zach had told me.

"Okay cool, thanks so much!" she hung up abruptly and I peered down at my phone.

Okay then.

Zach had said that as far as he could tell, it was like my dad didn't even exist. The only place he could find his name was on my birth certificate.

My mom's marriage certificate was gone, and he didn't have a drivers license, a credit card, or even bills of any sort. It was strange.

But it would be convenient to him if he was hiding from someone or something.

My main question was, where had he been all my life, and why hadn't I heard from him? Also, if he was hiding from someone, who was he hiding from?

I heard a car honk outside, and I peered out my window.

Elena was here already? That was fast.

~0~

I sat in Elena's car, processing everything she had just told me about her conversation with Jenna and Stefan.

So Alaric's wife was her mother? What a coincidence. That would make him her stepfather almost.

We drove with the radio faintly playing in the background, but other than that, it was silent.

We pulled up to the house, and Elena and I got out. She fished a small post-it note out of her pocket, and checked the address with the one on the note. They matched.

"Want me to come with you?" I asked, staring up at the big house.

Elena gnawed on her lip for a moment before nodding. "Yeah."

We went up the step to her porch, and Elena's fist hovered over the door. She hesitated, and I squeezed her shoulder, offering her a weak smile.

Elena glanced back at me, smiling weakly in return. She knocked twice, and stepped back, waiting.

A few moments past, and Elena shook her head, starting to walk away.

The door suddenly opened with a creak, and a blonde lady peeked outside.

Elena turned around, staring at the lady. "Trudie? Tru-trudie Peterson?"

"Yes?" she asked, still staring warily at us.

"Uh, my name is Elena Gilbert. I wanted to talk to you about Isobel Flemming." Elena explained nervously, her fingers playing with her necklace around her neck.

Trudie's gaze drifted over to me, and I chuckled.

"Hi. I'm Caroline Forbes, we're friends." I gestured to Elena and I, and she opened the door fully.

"Nice to meet you." she said to me. Turning her attention to Elena, she smiled a little. "I haven't heard that name in years. How do you know her?"

Elena chewed on her lip, seemingly speechless.

I spoke up for my friend, not wanting Elena to miss her chance to learn more about Isobel.

Sure, Elena could be a bitch at times, but she was still my friend.

"Elena thinks that, um, well...do you know if she had a baby that she gave up for adoption?"

"My god. You're her daughter!" Trudie's eyes widened, and she laughed gleefully. "I was just gonna make some tea. Would you all like some?"

"Sure." Elena nodded gratefully and I smiled.

"Uh, the kitchen's this way." Trudie walked backwards and Elena went inside.

"Aren't you coming, Caroline?" Elena asked from inside the house. I took a deep breath, and sighed.

I really didn't want to intrude, but since Elena wanted me there...

Stepping over the threshold, I heard the woman release a heavy breath, and she shut the door with a nervous glance out towards the street.

We went into the small kitchen and Elena and I took a seat at the kitchen table. We removed our jackets before sitting down, draping them over the back of the seat.

"I-I wasn't going to come." Elena suddenly said when Trudie had sat down and handed us empty tea cups. "I didn't think I was, but I was driving, and I hit this stoplight, and it made me think about when I was learning how to drive and then my mom would always warn me about this blind turn on the left-hand side, and then I was thinking about my mom, and—I had your address." Elena rambled, and she chuckled awkwardly. "I'm sorry for barging in."

She smiled coolly. "It's no problem." her eyes darted from me to Elena. "Um, just a surprise, though."

"I haven't thought about Isobel in years." Trudie admitted, glancing down at her own empty tea cup.

"When was the last time you saw her?" Elena asked, not noticing Trudie'sstrange behavior. The lady seemed jumpy and on edge.

Something was definitely off, but I couldn't put my finger on it just quite yet.

"About 17 years ago, when she left to have you..." Trudie got a far away look in her eye, reminiscing. "We kept in touch for a while, but ended up drifting apart."

I nodded sadly, knowing what it was like being close with someone, and then just drifting apart. Years ago, Elena and I were closer then Bonnie and her, but Elena started to date Matt, and in turn, she got more popular. The popularity made her arrogant and selfish. She fought for the head cheerleader position, and started a lot of drama. We drifted apart, and when my mom died, it only got worse. Elena and her family came to my funeral, but it was awkward, hugging my once best friend.

I vaguely heard the two ladies converse in the background as my mind drifted, but I didn't really realize what was going on until I heard the name of Alaric's old school.

"Duke, I think. Smart girl, smart school." Trudie responded to whatever Elena's question was.

Suddenly, the tea kettle whistled, and she got up, heading over into the kitchen.

"She's acting weird." I hissed to Elena, who stared at me with a shocked expression.

"What are you talking about?"

~0~

Third Person POV

Stefan milled around the town square, waiting for Alaric to show.

He heard footsteps, and he turned around to see him walking towards him.

He dipped his head in greeting, and Alaric smiled slightly. "Thanks for meeting me. Something's come up."

"Jenna told you," Stefan guessed, and Ric nodded.

"Yeah," he scratched the back of his head awkwardly, still not fully processing the whole situation.

They moved over to one of the trees, standing in its shadow. "So it's true. Your wife Isobel was Elena's birth mother."

"What does Elena know?" Ric asked, suddenly curious.

Sighing, Stefan crossed his arms over his chest. "About your wife?"

"About everything," Ric clarified, and then gestured to Stefan. "About you, your brother."

"She knows what I am, and she knows that you know about the vampires." Ric's brows furrowed, as if he honestly didn't expect Elena to know.

"Does she know about Damon and Isobel?" Alaric asked.

He knew what he had seen all those years ago. He wouldn't forget the face of the man who killed his wife. Ric was 110% sure it was Damon.

Stefan, on the other hand, wasn't as confident.

"No. I couldn't tell her, not until I was sure."

Ric nodded once, then changed the subject. "You said you'd help me."

"I asked Damon without saying too much. He doesn't remember." Stefan explained, and Ric worked his jaw back and forth, trying to keep his whirling emotions reigned in.

"Ask him again," he pleaded, and Stefan shook his head.

"Damon is not stable right now."

"You know, he murdered my wife, or at the very least made a meal out of her. When has he been stable?" Ric pushed, glaring at the vampire, who stared blankly right back.

"I'm telling you not to push this."

"Give me a reason not to," Ric countered, still staring him down.

"Your survival," Stefan murmured, his gaze serious and intense. "How's that for a reason? I'll handle it, but for now, I need you to let it go."

"Is that what you'll tell Elena? Let it go?"

Stefan moved closer to Ric and in the blink of an eye, they were only a few inches apart.

"Leave Elena out of this," he said through clenched teeth, his voice low and threatening.

"I need to know what happened. I think you would too," he said again, like Stefan didn't understand.

Stefan huffed a small sigh, and stepped back.

"I need something more than just your wife's name. A picture, something I could show Damon." he murmured. Ric obviously wasn't going to back down, and Stefan knew if he didn't help, Ric would end up dead in a ravine somewhere.

Ric rifled through his wallet for a moment, pulling out a small picture of Isobel.

"Here," he handed it to the vampire, who took it, met his gaze and walked away.

~0~

Matt made breakfast for his mother, glancing over his shoulder at her a few times.

He still honestly couldn't believe she was there.

"So, uh, it's been a few months. Where've you been?"

His mom had always been sort of a dead-beat, running off with whatever guy she was with for the month. Matt had met a few when he was younger, but eventually his mom stopped bothering to bring them home. He never really cared for any of them, anyways.

"Ah, you know, here and there. Never one place too long. You know Bill," She said airily, trying to wave the topic away.

"No, actually, I don't. Because you never brought him around," Matt mumbled and Kelly got up, ignoring her son's comment. Leaning against the counter, she asked.

"So, 'Lena's the flavor of the month again, huh? Thought you two called it quits a few months ago?"

Matt scoffed, "She's not a flavor, Mom. I like her."

"Remember, she broke your heart once, she might do it again." Matt didn't comment, and she continued. "So, she's 'the one'?" Kelly continued, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

Matt shrugged.

She grabbed a clean glass from the sink. She went over and opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of vodka, before sitting down at the table.

"Well at least it's not "Lezzie" Forbes' daughter. Eck. She's a bit much."

Matt turned around to stare at her in disbelief. "Liz died, Mom, knock it off. And, Caroline isn't that bad. She matured after the accident."

"Ice, please?" she asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes like the previous comment was non existent.

Matt sighed, and left the stove, where he was cooking pancakes, and took her glass.

"So, uh, you heard from Vic?" he asked as he got some ice out of the ice machine in the freezer.

"No, but don't worry. She'll come home eventually when she needs something. I played that game." Kelly took the glass from her son, and poured some vodka into it. She took her previous seat the table.

"Are you playing it now?" Matt asked.

"No."

"Then what are you doin' home?" he asked, and Kelly fidgeted in her seat.

This felt like an interrogation...

"Are you trying to say I need a reason to come back? Sit down. Eat with me." Kelly answered instead, smiling up at him.

Matt sighed, taking the last pancake off the griddle and putting it onto his plate. He shut off the appliance, and grabbing the syrup, sat down across from her.

"Tell me everything I've missed, hun," she beamed at him, ripping a piece of pancake off and popping it into her mouth.

~0~

Caroline's POV

Trudie brought out a yearbook after pouring us some tea. She flipped through the old book, and smiled down at a picture. Turning it around so we could see, she tapped a picture of the two of them.

"Ahh. They came to the games for us," she smiled fondly at the cheer uniforms in the picture. "Our football team hadn't won in years. We were the stars. Well, Izzie was. But I was a damn good backup."

Elena smiled and looked over at me. I grinned strangely back, feeling really out of place. It was weird for me, awkward almost, to be reminscing with someone I didn't know, about someone else who I also didn't know.

"Heh. This is great. Thank you," Elena said to Trudie.

"You're welcome." she looked at our full teacups. "You haven't touched your tea," Trudie eyed me expectantly and I tried to shake off the uncomfortable feeling I was getting.

"I totally forgot about it." I admitted, taking a sip.

It was still hot, and I coughed as it went down the wrong pipe.

Trudie stiffened and moved to grab something.

"Ouch, that was hot." I said once I stopped coughing. I picked it up and blew gently on it.

Elena blew on her own before taking a tentative sip. "Hmm," she hummed, while giving her cup a delicate sniff.

"What is this?" Elena's wide brown eyes met mine, and I took a small sip of mine, smelling it at the same time.

Vervain.

I would know it anywhere. I'd lost count of how many times I'd walked passed the vervain garden Zach kept in the cellar of the Boarding House.

"Oh, it's just some herbal mixture." Trudie said flippantly, and I noticed she seemed to calm down once I took another sip and didn't cough.

Did she think we were vampires?

"Vervain?" Elena said hesitantly and Trudie didn't respond.

"You know." I stated, piecing it together.. "You know don't you."

"Know what?" Trudie said nervously and my eyes widened.

Yep, definitley acting strange.

But the question was, would she tell us what she really knew – if she knew anything at all?

"You didn't invite us in. You served vervain tea."

Trudie scrambled to her feet, her body language tense and terrified.

"You should probably leave." she said firmly, staring at the both of us.

We set our cups down, getting to our feet.

"Wait. What are you not telling us?" Elena asked, stepping towards Trudie.

"Trudie." I looked at her calmly. "You can tell us."

Trudie stumbled back, and repeated, "Please leave. Now!"

Elena and I grabbed our jackets and left her home, shooting each other wary gazes.

Something was wrong, and I didn't like her reaction to my 'you know' statement one bit.

We got into Elena's car and we headed back home.

Halfway home, I spoke up,

"You can't play with Stefan's emotions like that." I turned and stared pointedly at her.

"What does that have to do with anything?" she asked, looking surpised.

For a second I regretted confronting her, but that feeling went away after Elena continued,

"What's that even supposed to mean?" she cast me a sidelong glance.

"You can't just flirt with him and date Matt. Both of them have their own feelings, and it's selfish of you to play them both, Elena." I replied smoothly, trying to not get too worked up. "I won't let you."

"Who are you to say who I date and who I don't? It's my life, Caroline, and if I want them both, then so be it!" I saw Elena's grip tighten and loosen on the steering wheel, and I knew I'd hit a nerve.

"Stefan and Matt are my friends too, and they deserve better."

Elena snorted, glancing at me again. "Who? Someone better like you? Yeah right."

I bristled at this comment, and changed the subject. "So, that whole Trudie thing, was weird, huh?"

Elena didn't respond, simply reached over and turned up the music.

Good job, Caroline, make the hour home drive even more awkward. Fan-freaking-tastic. I chided myself.

~0~

Third Person POV

Trudie's doorbell rang, and she answered her door, expecting it to be the two girls again.

"May I help you?" she asked.

"Thank you for the text," the man said. He had blonde hair and piercing blue eyes.

Surprise flickered over the man's face. When she was told to text the number when the daughter arrived, she didn't expect this. But to be honest, she didn't really know what to expect.

"You're welcome. I didn't tell them anything. I— I kept my promise."

"Good," He said, and clenched his fist at his side.

He definitely gave off a bad vibe, and it was beginning to make her feel...nervous.

"The blonde girl, though, she—she knew something."

"The blonde girl?" he questioned, his brows narrowed. "What blonde girl? Isobel's daughter is a brunette."

"She said her name was...Caroline? I don't remember her last name," she lied. "I think it was Frost or something. But I didn't tell them anything, I swear." Trudie didn't know why she lied, honestly. She guessed it was because she hadn't asked to have anythnig to do with this. She didn't want to help them too much. "Am I done?"

"Good," he repeated, studying the woman. He knew what he had to do. "And yes, you're done."

She visibly relaxed when he said this, and started to shut the door. The man, having his orders, grabbed a hold of the door, and started pushing it back open. She struggled against his strength, trying to shut it.

"No, I won't invite you in! You can't come in!" she shrieked, pressing harder.

"I'm not a vampire, so, yes, I can."

She gave one last shove before running towards the stairs, trying to get away.

He flung the door forcefully open, and it caught her heel, causing her to lose her balance.

"I don't understand. I did what you told me. I did my part!" she screamed, trying to scramble backwards up the stairs.

He stood above her, his eyes dark. "And now I have to do mine."

She yelped in fear, scrambling up the stairs. He let her reach the top before lumbering up after her. Grabbing her by the hair, he shoved her down the stairs. Her body tumbled and flipped down, landing at the bottom with a sickening crack. Red blood caked her scalp, turning her blonde hair a sticky brick color. It pooled around her head like a halo, and he descended the stairs. His job was done.

Sorry this chapter was so much like the show, but it had to be, as Elena still has to find her mom, and as Caroline can't play such a big role just quite yet. Sorry there wasn't any Klaroline or Daroline, but there might be a bit of both in the next chapter, depending on how it goes! (:

QOTC: What do you think Klaus' angle is in all this?